Tag: Chris Tuchscherer

Currently riding a six-fight losing streak with all losses coming in the first round, PRIDE/K-1 vet Mark Hunt last competed at UFC 119 in September, where he fell victim to a Sean McCorkle armlock in just 63 seconds. Hunt’s UFC debut was part of a contractual obligation carried over from his days in PRIDE, and we figured we’d seen the last of him in the Octagon when he lost in such garbage-ass fashion. And yet, the UFC has added the Kiwi kickboxer to the lineup of UFC 127 (February 27th; Sydney, Australia). Oceania represent?

Hunt will be taking on Team Deathclutch member Chris Tuchscherer, who’s also skating on thin ice, contract-wise. Tushcherer has gone 1-2 during his stint in the UFC, winning a razor-thin majority decision over Tim Hague between first-round knockout losses to Gabriel Gonzaga and Brendan Schaub. As Gonzaga himself might say, loser, you are a fired. In other heavyweight news…

Lesnar said he was feeling better from a three-week flu as recently as Sunday before announcing to his team in Minnesota that he was going to pull out of the fight. “He actually practiced (Sunday) and thought he might be feeling alright. He said, ‘Wow, I think I’m doing OK today,’” Tuchscherer said. “(Monday) he got here and it was the same old stuff — fatiguing right away, not being all there. After practice we were all sitting around, we were actually going to come back later at night to work out again, and he basically told us, ‘Hey guys, I’m going to pull out of this thing.’”

Tuchscherer said Lesnar began feeling flu-like symptoms about 25 days ago and didn’t practice last week in the hope that rest would end the illness.

You know what the most painful part of Chris Tuchscherer‘s loss to Gabriel Gonzaga at UFC 102 was? Getting place-kicked in the nuts, obviously. But you know what the second most painful part of that loss was? The fact that he was basically forced to keep fighting by inept Portland officials. While fans figured Tuchscherer’s decision to fight on after the illegal groin-shot was simply because he’s a tough son of a bitch, Chris told a different story to MMA Junkie:

"No one knew what was going on…between the doctor and the referee. No one could tell me a straight answer on if I couldn’t finish what would be the result. So I was out there and didn’t know what to do. I asked the doctor many times what would happen if I can’t continue. ‘Is it a no-contest? What happens here?’ And the doctor and the ref couldn’t tell me. They kept passing the buck on to each other out there, so no one could tell me what was going on."

About that time, Lesnar came cageside to check on Tuscherer. The heavyweight champ first inquired on his training partner’s health, at which time Tuscherer told him he thought, "My [testicle] is up inside my body."

(Tuchscherer puts Alexey Oleinik right where he wants him during the semi-finals of YAMMA Pit Fighting last April. Photo courtesy of Sherdog.)

With a record of 17-1 and wins over UFC vets like Krzysztof Soszynski, Travis Fulton, and Branden Lee Hinkle, Chris Tuchscherer has been paying his dues for over five years. And yet, the 33-year-old North Dakota native and former two-time NCAA Division II All-American wrestler was told "no dice" when he tried out for TUF 10 earlier this year. Luckily, the UFC came to their senses and decided to give the Crowbar a shot against Gabriel Gonzaga at UFC 102 this Saturday, in a match that could be pivotal for both of their careers. After months of training with long-lost-twin Brock Lesnar, Tuchscherer is ready to test his might in the Octagon. And his first opponent had better watch the hell out…

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CAGEPOTATO: You tried out for the tenth season of The Ultimate Fighter, and ended up with a contract to fight Gabriel Gonzaga. How exactly did that come about? CHRIS TUCHSCHERER: I thought I was going to get on the show — I tried out, everything was looking good, I got a second interview — then I got home and I got a call saying I wasn’t going to make the show. Later on that week, I got an e-mail from Joe Silva with a contract offer, so it worked out for the best. But I honestly couldn’t tell you why it went down like that. I was never told, like, “your record is this good, so we just want you to have a contract.”

If you did end up as a castmember on this season of TUF, how do you think you’d do? I think I would have done very well. I would have seen myself as one of the guys to make it to the finals.

At UFC 102 you’ll be facing Gabriel Gonzaga, who’s very dangerous but has been somewhat inconsistent during his time in the UFC. Do you view this fight as a big step up in competition? Well, I’ve faced some pretty good guys in the past. Gonzaga’s made his resume as a dangerous opponent in every aspect of the game, so I guess it’ll be a step up in competition considering where he’s been so far, but I don’t look at him as being any better of a man than me, or intimidating to me, because we’re all the same. He got his shot in the UFC in a different way, he made a name for himself right when he got in there, and he is who is now.

I’ve seen a few ofyour fights online, and your general strategy seems to be to take your opponent down and finish the fight with strikes from the top. Is that pretty much how it’s going to go down against Gonzaga?

Though Gabriel Gonzaga is one of the most fearsome can-crushers in the sport, he has repeatedly struggled against high-level competition during his tenure in the UFC. Now coming off a knockout loss to Shane Carwin at UFC 96 — his third defeat in his last five fights — Gonzaga may be getting his "win or GTFO" matchup. MMA Weekly reports that "Napao" and UFC newcomer Chris Tuchscherer have agreed to face each other at UFC 102, which is scheduled for August 29th in Portland.